Education Commons^™

How To Effectively Serve Your Department By Being An Influential Leader, Shelley Rouser, Charlisa Edelin, Renee Marine

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

For this workshop, we will invite Chairs to critically think about their role as a servant leader and how to pull six levers of influence to drive change. We will open the discussion with research and knowledge about the different types of leadership and concentrate on why influence is essential. Following the discussion, we will collaborate with Chairs in a consultative model on some influential servant leadership successes and challenges in a working session focused on generating practical next steps and workable solutions to the problems being faced.

Navigating Your Department Post Pandemic With Creative Wellness, Krista Bridgmon, Elizabeth List

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Presenters will discuss and participants will practice creative counseling skills including mindfulness, empathy, effective questioning, reflecting emotion and goal setting which will assist the evolving work-life concerns of faculty, staff, and students following the pandemic.

Leadership Lessons From Navigating Covid-19, Christopher Hirschler Phd

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Chairs played a key role in navigating important university decisions and communication during COVID-19, a hypersensitive time when mortality salience was elevated. We will explore leadership styles, view brief excerpts of videos that were created to celebrate degree completion and improve retention. Participants will distill “lessons learned” from a challenging year.

Upstairs/Downstairs: Moving Up And Down Through Leadership Roles, Markus Pomper, Margaret Thomas Evans

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

The presenters will discuss the challenges they encountered moving up from department chair into the role of dean and associate dean, and the back down into the role of a chair. We will engage participants through interactive discussion in several case studies.

What Do I Do Now?: Tackling Higher Education Adaptive Leadership Challenges, Jill Channing

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

The presenter and participants will discuss current trends, policy issues, and adaptive challenges influencing higher education institutions. Through discussions of research and case scenarios, participants will analyze adaptive leadership strategies and best practices for chairs to develop departmental cultures that are responsive to adaptive challenges.

Creating (Socially-Distanced) Community In A Multi-Site, Multi-Disciplinary Department, Christina M. Wolfe

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

In this presentation, I discuss ways to facilitate a sense of community in a multidisciplinary department at a multisite community college in a time of social distancing.

What’S Next? Preparing For The Next Leadership Position, Markus Pomper, Margaret Thomas Evans

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Many department chairs eventually return to their faculty positions. However, for some of us the department chair position is a stepping stone for advancing to higher administrative ranks. This interactive session will provide suggestions on how to prepare for applying for leadership positions above the department chair.

Moving The Faculty Diversity Needle: A View From The Trenches, Amanda Bozack, Darryl L. Corey

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Presenters and participants will discuss a real case scenario that brought diversity weaknesses to light in one department and explore diversity-focused strategies that chairs and departments can use to shape departmental culture to yield a more inclusive, diverse candidate pool for faculty searches and hires.

Cultivating The Mental Wellness Of Faculty, Staff, And Chairs, Jeffrey Reber

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Presenters and participants will discuss emerging strategies and best practices available to chairs to support the mental health and wellbeing of faculty, staff, and the department chair within the unique context of higher education and given the work-life needs of faculty and staff.

Leadership Development Experiences Of Department Chairs At A Canadian University, Leda Stawnychko

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

I will present the preliminary findings of a doctoral research study that explores the leadership development experiences of department chairs at a West Canadian university. The literature review, document analysis and themes emerging from semi-structured interviews with chairs of departments of diverse disciplines and sizes will also be explored.

The Department Chair Academy At The University Of Houston-Downtown, Edmund Paul Cueva, Lucy Bowen

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Presenters and participants will discuss a chair academy model that has had successful results. The topics covered in this presentation include the fundamental components of the academy (format, curriculum, activities), the origin of and need for the academy, and the results of a survey on the efficacy of the academy.

Master Sergeant, Pusher, Midwife, Or The Department Chair, Randall Bowden, Jesse Brock, Phillis Bunch

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Six decades of literature were examined to get a sense of the role of the academic chair. Three things emerge. Roles: (a) vary widely; (b) change drastically; (c) are culturally influenced. This session discusses the role’s development from the influence of societal changes more than duties assigned by administrators.

Successfully Navigating The Merger Of Three Academic Departments Into One, Amy B. Harkins Phd, Mardell A. Wilson Edd

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

The presentation will focus on the reasons that lead to the merger, the actual process of the merger, various change-management strategies, and the lessons learned. Participants will be encouraged to actively engage with questions and discussions throughout the presentation.

Time Management For Department Chairs, Christian K. Hansen

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Most department chairs face the challenge of getting important tasks completed under time constraints in an environment of frequent interruptions. Department leaders are often bombarded with demands from students, faculty and administrators and spend an excessive number of hours each day managing tasks that are often associated with tight deadlines. The nature of the chair position is likely to result in stress, burn out, and other unhealthy situations. This workshop presents strategies and proven practices for taking control of the available time and getting the job done while managing stress and giving priority to leading a healthy and enriching personal …

Breaking Through The Sexed Glass Ceiling: Women In Academic Leadership Positions, Sheila Smith Mckoy, Dawn Michelle Banauch, Keisha Love, Susan Kirkpatrick Smith

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

In 2009, Patterson, Kirschke, Seaton and Hossfeld revisited the ongoing conversation about gender inequity and inequality in higher education. Their work entitled Challenges for Women Department Chairs (New Prairie Press, 2009) focused on the numerous gaps – salary, promotion, discrimination, harassment -- that define women’s experiences in academic leadership. The emerging trends in academia still suggest that the work that they started in 2009 continues to be a vital concern for women in academic leadership positions. Very little research exists in relation to the intersectional conversations that need to occur when these gendered gaps are coupled with other aspects of …

The Changing Role Of The Department Chair, Dean Ann Tate, Kim Delauro Dr., Dawn Eaton Dr.

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

At San Jacinto College, the department chair role has changed significantly from the traditional model. Expanded to a twelve-month position, chairs commit to coaching faculty, engaging in strategic initiatives, and other special projects designed to improve student success. Benefits of enhanced supervision, strategic planning, and innovative projects will be discussed.

Difficult Department Chair Conversations Ignatian Style, Janet Kupperman 5014750

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

The session will explore different types of difficult conversations department chairs have and reasons the encounters may be considered difficult, introduce an Ignatian framework for having conversations, and give participants practice having difficult conversations from an Ignatian perspective.

Dealing With Difficult Faculty, Janet L. Gooch Ph.D., Ccc-Slp

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Difficult faculty may harass colleagues, staff, or students, may avoid their teaching, research and/or service obligations, and make the work environment difficult. This interactive workshop will provide strategies for Chairs dealing with difficulty faculty. Particular case studies will be presented and problem-solved by participants.

Positive Academic Leadership: How To Stop Putting Out Fires And Start Making A Difference, Dr. Jeffrey L. Buller

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Despite their best intentions, most department chairs soon find their days filled with handling complaints, solving problems and putting out fires (one hopes only in a metaphorical sense). Yet so much more is possible in academic leadership today. Borrowing from approaches like positive psychology and organizational behavior, Positive Academic Leadership creates a framework for changing the entire dynamic of an academic department.

This workshop is highly interactive with numerous exercises, role-plays, breakout discussions and departmental inventories. It will introduce the concept of positive academic leadership from a number of different perspectives. First, it will explore why academic leaders today so …

Academic Leaders Shaping Work-Life Culture, Laura Bryan, Cheryl Wilson

Academic Chairpersons Conference Proceedings

Presenters and participants will discuss emerging strategies and best practices available to chairs to support the creation of departmental cultures that are friendly and responsive to the work-life needs of faculty and staff.